Original Article
IJMDC. 2022; 6(7): 909-915
Clinical, epidemiological, and operational characteristics of gastroenteritis in Saudi children: An experience of a single tertiary pediatric center
Authors: Hamad AlKhalaf, Winnie Philip, Alaa AlSelaimy, Badriah AlEnazi, Elham AlHarthi, Norah AlHarbi.
ABSTRACT
Background: Acute gastroenteritis (AGE) is considered to have second greatest burden of all the infectious diseases. Knowledge of the etiology of diarrhea and its correlation to the length of hospitalization is not only important for the implementation of appropriate public health measures to control these disease but also, in many cases, for correct treatment. We aimed to investigate the epidemiology, clinical, and operational characteristics of AGE in hospitalized children in a tertiary pediatric center in Riyadh. Methods: Patients aged less than 14 years who were diagnosed with AGE and admitted to the Department of Pediatrics of King Abdullah Specialist children’s Hospital between January 2017 and December 2019 were enrolled. This study reviewed 902 patients with acute gastroenteritis. Results: The age group with the highest risk of hospitalization with AGE was children under the age of 2 years. Three hundred thirty-nine (87.1%) of pathogen positive stool samples were due to undetermined pathogens, while 50 (12.9%) were due to known pathogens. The study found that gender and age at diagnosis were statistically insignificant for the length of hospitalization. More with greater, the length of hospitalization was more among patients with the undetermined pathogens. Conclusion: This study found that the Salmonella species and a rotavirus were the most common known pathogens of AGE in hospitalized children. The gender and age of children with AGE had no association with the length of hospitalization. Moreover, the length of hospitalization was higher in children with AGE caused by undetermined pathogens than known pathogens.
Keywords:
Gastroenteritis, epidemiology, Riyadh, children, aetiology
Authors
Hamad AlKhalaf
Department of Pediatrics, King Abdullah Specialized Children’s Hospital, National Guard Health Affairs, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, King Abdullah International Medical Research Center, College of Medicine, King Saud bin Abdulaziz, University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
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Winnie Philip
Department of Applied Medical Sciences, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
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Alaa AlSelaimy
College of Medicine, King Saud bin Abdulaziz, University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
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Badriah AlEnazi
College of Medicine, King Saud bin Abdulaziz, University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
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Elham AlHarthi
College of Medicine, King Saud bin Abdulaziz, University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
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Norah AlHarbi
College of Medicine, King Saud bin Abdulaziz, University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
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Correspondence to:
. Department of Pediatrics, King Abdullah Specialized Children’s Hospital, National Guard Health Affairs, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, King Abdullah International Medical Research Center, College of Medicine, King Saud bin Abdulaziz, University for Health Sciences; Khalafha@ngha.med.sa
Publication history
Received 31 Jan 2022
Accepted 24 May 2022
Published online 15 Jun 2022
Published in print 08 Jul 2022
How to cite this article?
Export to EndNote Export to refManPubmed Style
AlKhalaf H, Philip W, AlSelaimy A, AlEnazi B, AlHarthi E, AlHarbi N. Clinical, epidemiological, and operational characteristics of gastroenteritis in Saudi children: An experience of a single tertiary pediatric center. IJMDC. 2022; 6(7): 909-915. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1643628366
Web Style
AlKhalaf H, Philip W, AlSelaimy A, AlEnazi B, AlHarthi E, AlHarbi N. Clinical, epidemiological, and operational characteristics of gastroenteritis in Saudi children: An experience of a single tertiary pediatric center. https://www.ijmdc.com/?mno=22321 [Access: September 29, 2022]. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1643628366
AMA (American Medical Association) Style
AlKhalaf H, Philip W, AlSelaimy A, AlEnazi B, AlHarthi E, AlHarbi N. Clinical, epidemiological, and operational characteristics of gastroenteritis in Saudi children: An experience of a single tertiary pediatric center. IJMDC. 2022; 6(7): 909-915. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1643628366
Vancouver/ICMJE Style
AlKhalaf H, Philip W, AlSelaimy A, AlEnazi B, AlHarthi E, AlHarbi N. Clinical, epidemiological, and operational characteristics of gastroenteritis in Saudi children: An experience of a single tertiary pediatric center. IJMDC. (2022), [cited September 29, 2022]; 6(7): 909-915. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1643628366
Harvard Style
AlKhalaf, H., Philip, . W., AlSelaimy, . A., AlEnazi, . B., AlHarthi, . E. & AlHarbi, . N. (2022) Clinical, epidemiological, and operational characteristics of gastroenteritis in Saudi children: An experience of a single tertiary pediatric center. IJMDC, 6 (7), 909-915. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1643628366
Turabian Style
AlKhalaf, Hamad, Winnie Philip, Alaa AlSelaimy, Badriah AlEnazi, Elham AlHarthi, and Norah AlHarbi. 2022. Clinical, epidemiological, and operational characteristics of gastroenteritis in Saudi children: An experience of a single tertiary pediatric center. International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries, 6 (7), 909-915. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1643628366
Chicago Style
AlKhalaf, Hamad, Winnie Philip, Alaa AlSelaimy, Badriah AlEnazi, Elham AlHarthi, and Norah AlHarbi. "Clinical, epidemiological, and operational characteristics of gastroenteritis in Saudi children: An experience of a single tertiary pediatric center." International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries 6 (2022), 909-915. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1643628366
MLA (The Modern Language Association) Style
AlKhalaf, Hamad, Winnie Philip, Alaa AlSelaimy, Badriah AlEnazi, Elham AlHarthi, and Norah AlHarbi. "Clinical, epidemiological, and operational characteristics of gastroenteritis in Saudi children: An experience of a single tertiary pediatric center." International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries 6.7 (2022), 909-915. Print. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1643628366
APA (American Psychological Association) Style
AlKhalaf, H., Philip, . W., AlSelaimy, . A., AlEnazi, . B., AlHarthi, . E. & AlHarbi, . N. (2022) Clinical, epidemiological, and operational characteristics of gastroenteritis in Saudi children: An experience of a single tertiary pediatric center. International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries, 6 (7), 909-915. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1643628366
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